FLEMINGTON, N.J. — A gallery show does not need a single medium, a single technique or even a single visual language to feel coherent. Sometimes the connection is simply the way the work asks people to pay attention. That is the thread running through Flemington DIY’s current September exhibition, the “Vibrant Art Show,” which brings together the work of Vidushi Mathur, Sharmilee Raje and Maureen Grotz at the community arts organization’s Stangl Road space.
The exhibition, which opened Aug. 30 and remains on display through Sept. 26, moves between precise dot mandalas, acrylic painting, crochet and fluid acrylic pouring. On paper, those approaches are quite different. In the room, they share something more useful: each artist works with repetition, color, texture or movement in a way that rewards a slower look.
Mathur, a New Jersey-based mandala artist originally from India, creates intricate dot mandalas built from thousands of individual marks. Flemington DIY describes her work as rooted in mindfulness, cultural heritage, geometry, nature and the patterns she observes in everyday life. The precision is part of the appeal, but the work is not presented as an exercise in technical perfection for its own sake. Mathur uses those repeated forms to explore growth, connection, strength and inner peace, turning a highly structured process into something personal and meditative.
That sense of patience carries into Raje’s work, although it takes a different form. Raje has spent nearly a decade working in painting and crochet, drawing heavily from the colors, rhythms and organic patterns of the natural world. Her acrylic pieces focus on changing color and natural forms, while her crochet work adds a literal layer of texture through decorative mandalas, home décor and accessories. In both media, the handmade process remains visible. The work is designed not just to decorate a space, but to bring some of the quiet and restorative qualities of nature into it.
Grotz approaches color from almost the opposite direction. Acrylic pouring gives the material room to move, spread and create patterns that cannot be completely controlled in advance. Her work uses those flowing forms to reflect the beauty of ordinary and unpredictable moments, with family serving as the emotional center of the collection. Grotz dedicates the body of work in part to her father, whose appreciation for small joys continues to shape her perspective, and to her daughter, whose curiosity and creativity push that perspective forward.
Together, the three artists make a good case for the value of a community gallery that is willing to let different forms sit beside one another without forcing them into a narrow theme. One artist builds order from thousands of carefully placed dots. Another moves between brushwork and fiber. Another lets paint create patterns through motion and chance. The methods vary, but the larger idea is remarkably consistent: making art can be a way of noticing more, not less.
That idea fits naturally at Flemington DIY. Founded in 2014, the nonprofit describes its mission as providing an inclusive art space that connects the community with the local arts scene while encouraging expression, social connection and economic activity in Flemington. The organization says it now hosts more than 200 events a year and operates as a 100% volunteer-run collective from its space in the Stangl Arts and Cultural District.
The result is a gallery experience that feels less like a formal stop on a cultural checklist and more like part of the everyday life of the neighborhood. Visitors can encounter the exhibition during regular open hours, while attending another program, or during one of the organization’s open-gallery sessions. On Saturday, Sept. 12, Flemington DIY is also hosting Open Gallery Hours and an Artist Market from 2 to 5 p.m., giving visitors another reason to spend time with the work and the broader creative community around it.
For local arts organizations, that kind of accessibility matters. A gallery becomes more useful when people do not have to treat it as a special occasion. They can walk in, look closely, discover an artist they did not know, and leave with a slightly different sense of what is being made in their own region. The “Vibrant Art Show” works especially well in that setting because its appeal is immediate — color, pattern, texture and movement — while the stories behind the work reward anyone who stays a little longer.
Sometimes the most effective local art show is not the one that demands an explanation at the door. It is the one that gives people a reason to stop, look, and notice what happens when patience, memory, nature and unpredictability all end up sharing the same wall.
If You Go
| Event | Vibrant Art Show |
|---|---|
| Artists | Vidushi Mathur, Sharmilee Raje and Maureen Grotz |
| On display | Through Sept. 26, 2026 |
| Next gallery event | Open Gallery Hours & Artist Market — Saturday, Sept. 12, 2–5 p.m. |
| Regular open hours | Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:30 a.m.–6 p.m.; also open for scheduled events or by appointment |
| Location | Flemington DIY, 26 Stangl Road, Flemington, NJ 08822 |
| Admission/access | Flemington DIY states that its events are all ages and that no one will be turned away due to lack of funds. |
| Calendar | Add event to calendar |
SOURCE NOTES
• Flemington DIY — September 2026 Art Show
• Flemington DIY — September 2026 Events Calendar
• Flemington DIY — About
Exhibition and gallery details attributed to Flemington DIY materials cited in SOURCE NOTES. Cultural framing is RMN's. Event details are subject to change; confirm with Flemington DIY before visiting.